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Prefab House is TOH Home of the Year

This Old House and Real Simple teamed up to highlight Blu Homes's Breezehouse for its innovative and sustainable—yet traditional—design

This Old House 2014 Home of the Year

While they are still built in a factory and delivered in sections to a homesite, today's prefabricated homes have come a long, long way since the first component-built homes were introduced to America in 1908.

California-based builder Blu Homes is one pioneer of the new prefabricated home. Following a two-year research study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Rhode Island School of Design, the founders of Blu designed a factory-built prefab home that felt more like a traditional home—with higher ceilings, more open living spaces, and a more efficient building envelope— and could be built in a fraction of the time.

This Old House and Real Simple have chosen Blu's Breezehouse as their 2014 Home of the Year. Read on for more about the innovative and sustainable building process behind this home.